1850s
introduces the to the ; publishes ; Russian forces fight against British, French and Ottoman forces in during the ; , an American steamship, sinks in the after a collision with a French steamship, in 1854; The opens in 1855 connecting the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans with a railroad in ; Anglo-French and Qing Empire forces engage each other in a four-year long campaign known as the starting in 1856; denies American citizenship as mandated under the to African Americans; publishes in 1859, presenting the idea of .}} The 1850s was a decade that ran from January 1, 1850, to December 31, 1859. The 1850s was a very turbulent decade, as wars such as the , shifted and shook European politics, as well as the expansion of towards the , which also sparked conflicts like the . In the mean time, the saw its peak on , that particularly made the nation experience an economic boom, as well as a rapidly increasing population. }} Wars * (1854–56) fought between and an alliance consisting of the , the , the and the . The majority of the conflict takes place around Crimea, on the northern coasts of the . * On 8 October 1856, the between several western powers and begins with the Arrow Incident on the . * (1859), also known as Franco-Austrian War, or Austro-Sardinian War. Internal conflicts * The : revolt against rule in * (1854–59): battles erupt in between proslavery and " " settlers, directly precipitating the . * (1857-61) in * (1851–64) in . (Southeastern China) * (1853–68) in . (Northern China) * in . (Guizhou Province) * in . (Guangdong Province) * (1855-67) in . (Guangdong Province) * (1856-73) in . (Yunnan Province) Prominent political events * and are unified and form . * attempts to create a . * Dissolution of the by the British. * Establishment of the (Zuid-Afrikaansche Republiek) and the , granting independence to the by the British. Assassinations and attempts Prominent assassinations, targeted killings, and assassination attempts include: * Eight were killed and 142 wounded in in a failed attempt on , Emperor of the French (1858). Science, technologies and Institutions * publishes , putting forward the theory of by natural selection in November 1859. * begins when traces the source of an outbreak of in London to a contaminated water pump. * Discovery of fossils in * s discovered by * established at 1850 Economics * Distinction between and begins to blur * Production of revolutionized by invention of the * fractionates by for the first time * First transpacific cable laid * First safety installed by * s begin to supplant s in the United States as a primary means of transporting goods. * First commercially successful sewing machine made by Environment * bring s to the Society * The word first appears in writing in 1855. * The word first appears in writing in 1856. Popular culture Literature * publishes , , and * publishes in 1850 * publishes in 1853 References Category:Modern history